Cross in Hand, Horam, Blackboys & Five Ashes

Published:06:00Friday 14 September 2018

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NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH: Beauty Spot Thefts. There have been a number of beauty spot thefts from vehicles in the Wealden area. The fact that these areas are quite isolated makes vehicles a target of thefts, especially in the summer months. Whilst enjoying the sites keep your possessions with you instead of leaving them in the vehicle. Make use of security products you may have such as steering locks. Register your belongings with immobilise. Remember to shut all windows and doors activating alarms. If you witness any suspicious behaviour report it to police via 101 or if there is a crime in action dial 999, giving as much detail as possible such as time frames, vehicle registration numbers, the person’s description etc.

READER’S EMAIL: The following information was sent to me by a reader of this column. ‘This may not be a problem but my son (ex Met Police) thought it worthwhile passing on. I was approached at home on Friday by a man offering a generator surplus to requirement on a job. On being told I had one, he then offered a power washer. He was driving a silver van SM18 FCO.’ If anyone has any information regarding the vehicle or the goods offered to the reader.

Please contact the police on 101.

FARM WATCH: Coordinator’s Update. Reported cases of loose animals on the public highways this week has risen from 24 to 122. This is made up by 115 sheep, five horses and two cows. Please, livestock owners, ensure that your field boundaries are animal proof. Please ensure that you check your road, motorway and railway sided fields at least once a day. There have been several thefts this week across both East and West Sussex. Items stolen include a WW1 memorial silhouette, eight ferrets, a compactor plate, items from a safe, a lock cutter, a leaf blower, a Stihl power tool, a CPT rig, 200 pheasants, a quad bike, a mini digger and a trailer. For detail see reports below. There is also some good news this week with suspects arrested and stolen items recovered as a result of members of the public calling in and sharing information with police. Details are below. 27/08/2018, 1180. A brown Sussex cow with an ear tag has gone missing from a farm in Waldron, Heathfield. 27/08/2018, 1198 Approximately 200 Pheasants were stolen from a farm in Cinderford Lane, Hailsham. 29/08/2018, 0976. Someone tried to break into outbuildings in Tanyard Lane, Furness Green, Uckfield. 29/08/2018, 1002. A bright red Honda 420 quad bike, that was chained to the floor, was stolen from an outbuilding on a farm in Polegate. 31/08/2018, 0807. An outbuilding in Bells Yew Green was broken into and two bicycles were stolen. One is a Black Scott Speedster and the other a Red Kinesis UK; their combined value is around £3k. A Honda strimmer and a Stihl strimmer were also taken. 01/09/2018, 0575. A Bobcat X120 mini digger, painted green with a black roof and white boom, along with an Ifor Williams four wheeled plant trailer were stolen from a property in Hailsham. Due to an appeal on social media, both items were returned. 02/09/2018, 0445 22 sheep were stolen from a field in Little Trodgers Lane, Mayfield. The owner believes they were lifted over the fence as there is no damage to the boundary fence. If you saw or heard anything, or have any information about any incident in this message please contact police online, email at 101@sussex.pnn.police.uk or call 101, quoting the reference number provided

WEALDEN ALERTS: Lookout for illegal waste carriers. Spot checks on Wealden’s roads have resulted in one waste carrier left with no vehicle to drive home. Last month’s combined operation by Sussex Police and Wealden District Council’s Street Scene Team found the driver had no insurance or Waste Carrier’s Licence. The van, and its load of scrap metal, was impounded until the correct documentation was produced, and fees and fines paid. The vehicle occupants were unable to provide a Waste Carrier’s Licence, which is a legal requirement when transporting waste commercially. They were issued with a producers notice by Wealden’s Street Scene team which requires them to produce the correct documentation within seven days. The joint operation resulted in a number of other drivers being given advice about their responsibilities in relation to carrying waste. Several others were asked for documentation which they later produced. Keep an eye out for the spot check team as more days are planned. If you require information on the requirements for waste carrying, advice is available from the Environment Agency either online or over the phone. Householders should always check for and see a Waste Carriers Licence for anyone removing waste from their property. A receipt and/or photo of the licence can be requested and kept. There are significant penalties if your waste is found dumped and you cannot prove that you made any checks. If you have any concerns about waste carriers or fly tipping, please contact the Street Scene Team on street.scene@wealden.gov.uk or 01892 602735

GRANTS: Wealden’s Community Grants get a capital boost. The amount available for a project through Wealden’s capital grant scheme has been increased to £15,000. It will provide extra help to community buildings in need of support. Grants are now available through the Council’s Small and Capital Grant Schemes. They will help local groups and village organisations continue the valuable work they do for the community. Applications for both Community Grant schemes are invited by November 302018 so that awards can be made for the 2019/20 financial year. Long term Service Level Agreements are also available for funding of up to three years. The Wealden Small Grant Scheme offers grants of between £500 to £3,000. The Wealden Capital Grants Scheme offers amounts between £1,000 to £15,000. Wealden has organised a series of pre-application advice sessions at Hailsham, Crowborough and Uckfield. These will help to explain how to make the best use of this funding opportunity. All applicants are encouraged to contact the Partnerships and Funding Support Officer before beginning an application. Grants have to be match funded, but this can be entirely ‘in-kind’ through volunteer time. This ensures they can help well-supported groups of limited financial means. The deadline for applications is November 30. Funds for Capital and Small Grants must be spent within the next financial year which runs from April 2019 to March 2020. A limited number of 40 minute pre-application advice sessions for organisations which have not applied to the Council recently will take place at: Hailsham, Thursday morning October 11 Vicarage Lane Offices; Tuesday afternoon October 30. Crowborough, Monday morning October 15 Community Centre; Friday afternoon November 2. Uckfield, Thursday morning October 18 Civic Centre. Sessions must be booked in advance and are to discuss a drafted application for your organisation. They must be pre-booked on 01323 443520. Organisations that cannot attend a session can submit a draft application form by November 15. Feedback will be given to help to strengthen the application, although it will not guarantee success. Guidance and notes are available for every strand of the scheme. Please see the website. Further questions can also be answered by contacting the council’s funding support officer. A full list of what has been funded this year can be found by searching for grant funding on the Council’s website, www.wealden.gov.uk Wealden’s Partnerships and Funding Support Officer Michelle Gray also gives support to third sector organisations on: Sourcing relevant funding; assistance with applications; sustainable income advice; signposting Advice.

BE STREETWISE: And get learning. How useful are your English and maths skills? Do you need more confidence to achieve your personal goals? Or perhaps you fancy exploring your creative side? Street Learning can help with all this and more. Courses run between September and December. Best of all it’s completely free to anyone aged 19 or over and living in Wealden and Eastbourne. Some of the courses on offer this year include: Functional skills qualification courses (English and Maths). IT for You, basic IT skills. Be Confident. Keeping Your Child Safe Online.

Introduction to Mindfulness. Get out and Garden. Arts and Crafts for Wellbeing. Seasonal Cooking. Working with Wood. The Prince’s Trust Team Programme. For more information about the venues, and to download the 2018 programme, just search for Street Learning on the Wealden website or request a copy by emailing streetlearning@wealden.gov.uk.

SOUTH EAST WATER: Many thanks to South East Water Communications Department for coming back to me regarding a piece I wrote on Water in my August 17 column. Their response is as follows: With reference to Village News, Cross in Hand, Horam, Blackboys and Five Ashes article entitled Water. South East Water would like to assure readers that despite the recent dry spell, water resources are at the levels expected for the time of year and there are no plans to have water use restrictions. The company monitors its resources continuously, whatever the weather throughout the year and responds swiftly when demand increases. During the hot weather, South East Water produced an extra 100 million litres of treated water a day to meet the increased water use of its customers across its supply area of parts of Sussex, Kent, Hampshire, Surrey and Berkshire. That’s the equivalent to 1.25 million toilet flushes every day. At the same time, the company increased its water efficiency messaging. It gave interviews to the press, and put additional advice on its website and on social media pages. On the ‘Saving water’ section of the website alone, South East Water saw page views increase from an average of 900 a month to more than 5,500 when the weather was warmest. South East Water plans at least 60 years ahead to make sure it can keep the taps flowing into the future. From February 2018 to May 2018 it consulted on its draft Water Resources Management Plan and its revised plan was published on Friday, August 24 2018. It sets out how the company will respond to expected population growth and the possibility of less rainfall due to climate change. For Sussex, the plan includes an extension to Arlington Reservoir, which if it gets the go ahead, could be in use by 2035. The company has exceeded its target on leaks set by its regulator Ofwat for the last 15 years consecutively. It is also investing in new technology which will reduce still further the amount of treated water lost to leaks and bursts, both on its own network and on customers’ pipework. By putting these plans in place and with its £424 million investment in replacing old water mains, in upgrading its strategic network and water treatment works, South East Water believes it is in a good position to serve its communities now and provide water for future generations.

BLACKBOYS: Cellar Head Brewing Company, Framfield. As part of the Tunbridge Wells Beer Weekend, Cellar Head will be brewing a limited edition (70 bottles) of green hopped beer at The Royal Oak. For more information on this event and to purchase tickets either pop into The Royal Oak, Tunbridge Wells or purchase them online at www.cellarheadbrewing.com

CROSS IN HAND: Cross in Hand Primary School. In her start of new term message, head teacher Sarah Massheder writes: ‘It is always a thrill for us to welcome the children back to school and this year was no different. None of us could believe how much they had grown. As ever, we have had a busy time in school over the holiday. Mr Baird has been busy painting, decorating and repairing, and we have had a whole load of new windows and Velux roof lights fitted. Our Early Years outdoor area has been completely re-vamped and the staff have been in school over the summer getting their classrooms ready. When the children came back on Wednesday we were ready and raring to go! As well as our lovely new Early Years children, we have welcomed quite a few new children in year groups across the school this September. A big welcome goes to all of our new children, and we hope that they will all be very happy with us at Cross in Hand. Another welcome, we have two new teachers at our school. Mr Pickford is teaching Year 3/4 Amberley Class. He is a very enthusiastic teacher who has a love of geography and is interested in vexillology (there’s one for Google...) Miss Rudd is teaching Year 3/4 Arundel Class along with Mrs Oates. She is an experienced teacher and in fact used to work with us in Year 5 a few years ago. We hope that they will have a happy and successful time at our school.

We must be nut free. ‘We are a very, very inclusive school and we are proud to welcome children here who have a variety of needs. We have a child in school now who has an extremely serious allergy to any and all types of nut. The seriousness of the allergy is such that we must now insist on being 100 percent nut free in packed lunches, in cakes for cake sales and also in the staff room. Even nut dust in the air can cause a serious allergic reaction for this child, so please do not send anything to school that contains nuts. Remember, we must be nut free. ‘Your child(ren) will be attending Forest School at school this year. It is held on Tuesdays and the details are as follows: Term 1 Hastings and Camber; Term 2 Bodiam Y1 children and Chiddingstone; Term 3 Herstmonceux and Pevensey; Term 4 Amberley and Arundel; Term 5 Scotney. In Term 5 Bodiam, Amberley and Pevensey will each get two more sessions and in Term 6 Herstmonceux, Chiddingstone, Scotney, Arundel, Camber and Hastings will each get two more sessions. Early Years children will be going out across the year with the EY staff. EY parents will be told when the children will be going out. ‘Sessions are now one and half hours long, to allow more time for the complete Forest School experience. Children will be going outside in all weathers (with the exception of thunder and lightning) and will need appropriate clothing and equipment. I would recommend at the very least a change of clothes to protect school uniform from mud and potential rips but waterproof over-trousers work very well over the school uniform, offering warmth and protection. A normal school coat will suffice but please be aware it will get dirty. In the colder months children should wear gloves, as their hands are the first parts of their bodies to get cold and they can be painful when trying to work with string or natural materials. Thicker gloves are provided for tool work. In the drier months, trainers or plimsolls will be ideal for Forest School and offer more grip than wellington boots but in the wet months wellies really are preferable for splashing in puddles and mud, though they are not good at keeping in warmth, so I would suggest a thick pair of socks (or two pairs). At some point each term, the aim is to let the children cook food, make s’mores or drink hot chocolate around the camp fire, so please do make sure the teachers know of any intolerances or allergies and provide a named mug/cup if you can. If you would like any further advice, guidance or information on the benefits of Forest School, please do contact me via the school office and look out for a parent information and taster session coming soon.’

SINGING FOR FUN: Singing for fun for everyone started on Monday, September 10 at 2pm at Cross in Hand Methodist Church at the top of Firgrove Road and continues on Mondays from now on. The car park is on the left hand side. There are favourite songs to sing and do take along songs and music for the group. Time for refreshments and a chat afterwards.

MAYFIELD AND FIVE ASHES: Mayfield Carnival tomorrow, Saturday, noon to 11pm. The Carnival is coming. Make sure you are there for the wreath laying, spectacular processions and firework display. They could do with some help on the night or with tidying up the morning after, please contact Jo@mayfieldbonfire.co.uk or go to the Mayfield Bonfire Society Facebook page. The society needs some more volunteers to keep this wonderful event going.

MEET YOUR WEALDEN OFFICERS: Come and meet Officers from your Wealden Prevention Team. Pop in for crime prevention advice and discuss issues affecting your local community. 2pm to 4pm on Monday at the Council Office, The Broadway, Crowborough.

PARISH COUNCIL: Councillor Vacancy. As previously mentioned the Parish Council needs to co-opt a Councillor to represent the Ward of Five Ashes. If you are interested you should forward your CV to the office with a covering letter outlining why you think you would be a valued member of the parish council and any areas of expertise that you could offer. These will then be circulated to Councillors for consideration. Prospective Councillors will be invited to attend a parish council meeting to introduce themselves and speak for a couple of minutes. A vote would then take place on the co-option.

ROAD CLOSURES: Please be aware that due to South East Water’s improvement works there are two local road closures scheduled. Pennybridge Lane will be closed for two weeks from September 10. Coggins Mill Lane will be closed for two months from September 24 with a long diversion route in place. South Street is scheduled for closure from September 24 for five days from the junction of Vale Road to Star Lane for SGN to carry out works to lay a new gas service.

WEALDEN LOCAL PLAN: Wealden District Council is carrying out their consultation on the proposed submission document of their Local Plan. The document sets out planning policies for growth and change within Wealden District (excluding the area of the District which is within the South Downs National Park) up until 2028. After consideration of all representations received they intend to submit the document to the Secretary of State for examination later in 2018. You can view the Proposed Submission Wealden Local Plan and associated documents on the Council’s website; www.wealden.gov.uk/wealdenlocalplan or at the Parish Council office. When submitting comments they request that you respond to the consultation questions on either the online consultation portal or their representation form (copies can be made available in the Parish Council office). In order to assist the process, it is requested that consideration is given to any submission to ensure that they are relevant and to the point. If a long submission cannot be avoided, please provide a summary of the main points to be addressed. Before submitting your comments they strongly encourage you to read their Guidance Note for Respondents. Please be aware that any comments you submit cannot be treated in confidence as Regulation 30 of the Town and Country Planning (Local Development) (England) Regulations 2004, requires copies of all representations to be made publicly available. Wealden District Council will publish names and representations on its website, but will not publish personal information, such as telephone numbers, emails or private addresses. By submitting a representation you are accordingly confirming that you agree to this and accept responsibility for your comments. Please telephone 01892 602008 or email ldf@wealden.gov.uk if you require assistance in submitting your representation or if further information is required. If you, or somebody you know, would like the information (guidance notes, forms etc) in large print, Braille, tape or in another language please let them know. The parish council will be discussing its response to the Local Plan at its September full council meeting.

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